IN a strange week of WAFLW action where most of the matches were close, it was actually the losing sides that shared the spoils in our WAFLW Team of the week. South Fremantle and West Perth joined winners Subiaco as the sides with the equal league-high WAFLW Team of the Week representatives.

The Bulldogs, Falcons and Lions all had four players in the WAFLW Round 11 side, while the other three winning teams – Claremont, East Fremantle and Peel Thunder – had three apiece. Swan Districts (two) and East Perth (one) rounded out the 24-strong squad.

This week’s hypothetical captain was Claremont reigning Dhara Kerr Medallist Jayme Harken who amassed 31 touches, five marks and four tackles in the Tigers’ nail-biting win over the Bulldogs. Harken was one of three Tigers in the team, with Claire Ortlepp named at full-back, and midfielder/forward Jacinta Valentini named at half-forward.

The vice-captain comes from the opposition in top-age jet Molly O’Hehir who showed her class and strength racking up 25 touches, four marks, 10 tackles and seven inside 50s in the narrow loss. She was one of four Bulldogs in the side, with fellow top-ager Noa McNaughton making the team, as did defender Hunter Cronin, and for the first time, Tasmanian ruck Charlotte Vandenberg slotted into the starting role.

West Perth also had a quartet of players in the side despite going down to East Fremantle. Winger turned inside midfielder Megan Norbury assumed her spot in the former, while midfielders Emily Bennett and Bianca Webb both made the squad. Completing the four Falcons was midfielder/defender Kaitlyn Roper who earned her spot for the first time in 2024 off half-back.

East Fremantle was victorious in that game, and it was no surprise for Zippy Fish to once again be prominent, named off the other half-back flank in this side. Tiani Teakle impressed in her new role down back, while midfielder Chloe Wrigley was consistent as always.

Subiaco picked up a crucial win over Swan Districts and racked up four representatives, the most of any winning side. Starting in defence is Beatrice Devlyn, while forwards Olivia Wolmarans and Aimee Schmidt fill out the key forward spots. Black Ducks midfield duo Carys D’Addario and Lily Paterson both shone and were unlucky to be pushed to the bench due to the strength of the on-ball group.

The other winner of the weekend was Peel Thunder over East Perth. Winger Holly Britton makes her debut as a starter in the Team of the Week after a strong performance, while Ebony Bilcich and Riley Fisher also slotted into the 24-player side. The Royals had the one representative in dangerous small forward/midfielder, Lucy Greenwood.

The three emergencies chosen this week were East Fremantle’s Ashleigh Gomes, Subiaco’s Leila Rowe and Swan Districts’ Hope Ugle-Hayward.

2024 WAFLW TEAM OF THE WEEK: ROUND 11

B: Hunter Cronin (South Fremantle) – Claire Ortlepp (Claremont) – Beatrice Devlyn (Subiaco)
HB: Zippy Fish (East Fremantle) – Tiani Teakle (East Fremantle) – Kaitlyn Roper (West Perth)
C: Megan Norbury (West Perth) – Emily Bennett (West Perth) – Holly Britton (Peel Thunder)
HF: Ebony Bilcich (Peel Thunder) – Olivia Wolmarans (Subiaco) – Jacinta Valentini (Claremont)
F: Noa McNaughton (South Fremantle) – Aimee Schmidt (Subiaco) – Lucy Greenwood (East Perth)
R: Charlie Vandenberg (South Fremantle) – Molly O’Hehir (South Fremantle) (vc) – Jayme Harken (Claremont) (c)
INT: Carys D’Addario (Swan Districts) – Riley Fisher (Peel Thunder) – Lily Paterson (Swan Districts) – Krstel Petrevski (Subiaco) – Bianca Webb (West Perth) – Chloe Wrigley (East Fremantle)

EMG: Ash Gomes (East Fremantle) – Leila Rowe (Subiaco) – Hope Ugle-Hayward (Swan Districts)